Nestled in upscale West Hollywood, L.A. Vie L’Orange is a fantastic manicure and pedicure spa that is not the usual noisy crowed nail salon.   Their motto holds true to their salon:  indulge, pamper and rejuvenate.

Once you arrive, you are greeted with a warm welcome and offered something to drink.  After you choose your nail color, you are promptly escorted into your peaceful wicker surrounded private station.  L.A. Vie L’Orange has a no-cell phone policy which is great since they have a large waterfall feature that creates the most amazing serene ambiance.

If you go, I would recommend to get the works and ask for their signature orange peel treatment.  First they soak your feet into a warm bath of hot stones, orange peels and herbs.  After the soak, callous remover serum is generously smeared on the bottom surface of your feet and a gentle callous removing wand is gently rubbed to your skin.  Your feet nearly tickle with laughter after the other steps such as the alpha-hydroxy sea scrub, hot oil massage, paraffin wax and cucumber heel cream are applied.

L.A Vie L’Orange is one of my favorite getaways in West Hollywood, so if you need a quicky touch up or want to getaway for an hour or so, definitely take the time to find this hidden gem.

After living in Southern California for a few years, I really enjoy the wonderful sunshine, and the dry heat. But, sometimes I need a change of scenery. When I am in the mood for a cooler climate and a taste of nature (and of course silence from my chatty Mother-In-Law), I get away to Victoria Canada. When in Victoria, I recommend staying in the Magnolia Hotel.

This luxury spa boutique hotel is situated near Victoria’s Inner Harbour where they have amazing waterfront, numerous restaurants, attractions, galleries and shops. When I am not sightseeing and touring the city, I relax in their spa. My favorite treatment is the Botanical Skin Resurface which is a hands-on approach that has amazing results. After the treatment, you will have fewer lines and wrinkles, smoother texture, more radiance & a decreased pore size. I love this since it does not irritate my highly sensitive skin (like microdermabrasion does).

If you are looking for a change of pace and want to reclaim your beauty, check out Victoria Canada!

If I had a choice, right now I would go to France and indulge in a wine spa in Bordeaux.  Wine spas are nothing new, as they have been around since 1999.  Because of the wine’s high antioxidant levels, wine treatments are supposed to firm the skin and slow the aging process.  How great is that!  Another fantastic benefit of wine!

Of course they have some the basic massages such as deep tissue, lymphatic drainage & reflexology, but they also have some unique ones as well like the Guerlain Imperiale Massage, the 4-Hand Imperiale Massage & the Pre & Postnatal Body Therapy Massage.

The Guerlain Spa has the most amazing cutting-edge facials, invigorating body sublimation techniques, and some intensive hand and foot therapies. This spa is not just for women either. This spa has 5 different skin therapies for men as well.

They also have full day experiences that include a lunch. Don’t forget to check out their makeup artistry services as well.

Life is short; why not take a minute to restore yourself and getaway to a spa?

Memphis in May is a fantastic month full of activities and things to do with your family, friends, or heck, even by yourself!  The month’s events include the Beale Street Music Festival, the next weekend is the BBQ Cooking Contest & the finale is the Sunset Symphony. 

The Beale Street Music Festival is a 3-day event in which they have hundreds of artists playing on numerous stages.  They have headlines from Blues, Jazz, Rock, Pop & Country. 

The first year I went to the Beale Street Music Festival it was beautiful spring weather all 3 days!  I brought a blanket and enjoyed the music on the grass in Tom Lee Park.  And, of course I enjoyed some beer/drinks etc.  It was great!  

The second year I went to the music festival it rained all 3 days, and to tell you the truth, I had even more fun than the sunny weekend the previous year!   The rain did not stop a group of us from enjoying the concerts from each of the main stages. 

My absolute favorite event of the month is the BBQ Cooking Contest.  The first year I went to this event, I was invited by a friend of mine who loves to cook, so I had expected a few small campout grills.  To my delight, it was nothing like what I had imagined!  When I got there, all I could see were huge, elaborate booths & tents, each with funny little names and tons of food, fresh off the BBQ.   I could not believe the rows and rows of booths –some corporate & some were just a group of friends gathering together to cook BBQ in their booth.  There is nothing better then when the sun sets on the Mississippi River, the aroma of BBQ, and having fun with friends.  Every time I now smell BBQ, I think of the BBQ Cooking Contest and yearn for the next contest to begin.

The grand finale of Memphis in May is the Sunset Symphony.  It is a full days worth of picnicking, having fun with your family and listening to music from the AutoZone Sunset Symphony.  The day begins with local musicians playing and then ends with the headline band.  What a fun family activity!

 Memphis in May is one of the nations best kept secrets.  If you ever have the chance to go to Memphis, please try and go in May and attend one of the events.  It is well worth your time.  Your ears & tummy will thank you!

Anyways, to escape this time, we decided to take a 3-day weekend to a small quaint city called Montecito, California.  I had never been there before, but had heard Oprah owns a home there, so I thought, what the heck, let’s check this place out!  This small city is the perfect getaway from a large metropolis because it is small (roughly 10,000 residents), calm and serene.  It is located east of the city of Santa Barbara and in the foothills of the Santa Ynez Mountains. 

Since my husband was recently laid off, we needed a reasonably priced room.  So, we scoured Craigslist to find a weekend rental.  Hubby found a place immediately and he had a gut feeling, it was “the one”.  I was a little apprehensive of what kind of place he found because the pictures were a tad bit blurry.  But, since I was ready for a retreat, I agreed to this adventure and after we packed our bags, we were off!

As we traveled to our destination, we noticed how different this part of Southern California is.  It was green, lush and almost lavish.  Some of the other parts of the state seem almost desert-like, so this was refreshing!  Once we arrived in Montecito, we decided to find the place we were staying at and check in.  On the way to the final destination, I noticed how beautiful the homes appeared to be within the city.  It is quite apparent they take pride in their homes there (or perhaps it has something to do with how wealthy the people are who live there!).   Gorgeous landscape and billowing palm trees really made up most of the city.   

We drove another few minutes on windy hilly roads and arrived at the address we were given and to our delight, my husband hit the jackpot with the place he found!  Our destination was in a tranquil residential neighborhood.  The dwelling was a small studio apartment addition to the main home (a large mansion!).  It was great!  It had its own separate entrance, a small kitchenette, a queen-sized bed, a small spa-like bathroom with a shower and a wood-burning fire place!  Score!   We immediately unpacked the car and peeled out to check out the sites and in search of some groceries and firewood. 

The homeowner told us a few points of interest, so we decided to check one of them out—it was the Mediterranean Biltmore Hotel.   When we arrived, we could not believe it!  It was an absolutely incredible oasis of a hotel!  It had amazing little adobe cabins, a tantalizing restaurant and amazing beachfront views.  Now, this was paradise!  Since we were not staying there, we just toured the place, walked on the peaceful beach and then left.  If we had not just eaten before we arrived, we would have totally indulged on a meal there! 

Since it was getting to be around our baby’s bedtime, we decided to get some groceries, wine and head back to the rental.  Once in the town square, we found the main shopping area.   It had a few quaint shops and a grocery store.  As we were loading our cart full of goodies for the weekend,  we saw the movie star Rob Lowe in the grocery store (by the way, he is just as handsome in person as he is on film!).   

After we loaded the car with our new found goodies for the weekend, we enjoyed the uneventful drive back to our retreat and nestled in for a weekend of relaxing, hiking and much needed peace and quiet from our busy, noisy lives with my mother-in-law. 

We enjoyed our time in Montecito, California and would recommend if you need a tranquil place to hang your head for a few days, you should venture there!